Al-Ittihad refused to play a match against Sepahan in the Asian Champions League. The reason is know

In the second round of the AFC Champions League, the Iranian team Sepahan was supposed to host Al-Ittihad. However, the match was canceled.

It was revealed that a bust of Qasem Soleimani was placed near the pitch. The Saudi team demanded that it be removed, threatening not to take the field otherwise. Their condition was not met, and Al-Ittihad did not participate in the match; they headed to the airport instead. Consequently, the game was canceled.

Qasem Soleimani was an Iranian major general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and he led the Quds Force, responsible for extraterritorial military and clandestine operations, from 1998 until his death. Soleimani began his military career in the early 1980s during the Iran-Iraq War, commanding the 41st Division. He later became involved in overseas military assistance operations to anti-Saddam Shiite and Kurdish groups in Iraq, as well as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian territories.

In 2012, Soleimani played a significant role in supporting the Syrian government during the Syrian Civil War, particularly in operations against ISIS. Soleimani helped coordinate the efforts of the Iraqi government and Shiite militias fighting against the Islamic State from 2014 to 2015.

Additionally, it's worth reminding that Gerard believes that the Saudi Arabian League will soon compete with the Premier League.